"Chisnall creates art that references such things as structure, time and Modernism as they pass through a very contemporary mindset that focuses on humor, transience, functionality and futility.”
D. Dominick Lambardi, 'Repurposing With a Passion', The Huffington Post.

Friday, 13 December 2013

For the last month and a half, I've working on designs for the new Ping Pong restaurant, next to Wembley Stadium, North London. For anyone that doesn't know much about Ping Pong, they're an international restaurant chain that specialise in Dim sum. And for this project I've been working in conjunction with Andy Martin Architects who have done an amazing job on the look and feel of the building.

After numerous ideas and sketches (some of them a bit more out there than others) we settled upon a 1930's Shanghai influence for my mural design, as this tied in with the over-all vibe of the restaurant. My approach to the mural was to paint it in such a way that it looks as though the design has been up on the wall for years, and faded, and flaking off in places. This was easier to achieve in the flat areas of colour, such as the stylised, blue and white, cloud element, but a bit trickier with the tonal areas of the figure. But I'm very happy with how it turned out.

As well as the mural, I also hand-painted five large wall panels for the ladies and gents. The original designs for these were quite adventurous but in the end we realised that something a little more toned-down would work best in these areas. So I came up with a subtler image that was a sort of contemporary take on a fairly traditional oriental flower and stem design.

The piece that I most enjoyed working on during this project is a massive, 20 metre-long light box that hangs from the ceiling, in the centre of the restaurant. For this I came up with a predominantly aquatic themed design, incorporating drawings of jellyfish, octopuses, fish, seaweed, and weird forms, morphing together. This is the part of the project into which I feel I was able to inject more of my own style, and therefore really go to town on it.

Unfortunately the light box had not been installed by the time that I finished the mural so I don't have any photos of it yet. In fact, when I return in the New Year (to complete another mural for a private dinning area that has been built on-site), that will be the first time that I get to see the fully constructed light box. But until I go back and take some photos, here's a preliminary drawing that I made for one element of the piece, just to give you a feel for it. The actual light box design is quite brightly coloured, so that's another thing that I'm eagerly anticipating seeing.

Monday, 9 December 2013

I'd like to say a big thank you to everyone who has been voting for my entry in the up-coming Curious Art-Pie Show, which, amazingly, has now put my piece in the top three most voted for. The artwork that I've entered is my 2m tall, piece, Orifice Tower. The organisers of the show told me that it is the only sculptural entry so far. So hopefully that should stand in its favour – I think!

So if any of you kind souls out there wouldn't mind casting a vote my way (or even spreading the word) I'd be a very happy bunny. I'm sure that all of you are pretty computer-savvy, but for any fellow Luddites out there, in order to vote, you have to click on the yellow stars (1 star BAD, 10 stars GOOD) at the top left-hand side of the page of whoever it is that you want to vote for (yes, it took me quite some time before I realised this).

The closing date for casting votes is 31st December but to find out more about the show, here's some details that I lifted from the organisers' website -

Art-Pie, London based bloggers collective bringing you street and modern art encounters straight on your screen, has been sponsored by Curious Duke Gallery (CDG) and are asking you, the public, to vote in a top 50 of artists in our open submission competition for unrepresented artists to win a chance to exhibit their work in The Curious Art-Pie Show in February 2014, in CDG’s East London space.

All submissions will be live online under artists entries, giving you the chance to cast your discerning vote on these creative talents by the 31/12/2013. Your carefully chosen top 50 will then be whittled down to 20 by our panel of industry insiders, culminating in the line up for The Curious Art-Pie Show.
Showcasing from 6th – 12th February 2014 in Curious Duke Gallery’s 300 year old building, we look forward to seeing you there (and your choices)!

Sunday, 1 December 2013

I've been so busy the last month and a half, working on designs for the interior of the new Ping Pong restaurant in Wembley that I've not had much time for any blog updates of late. But I'll just give a quick mention of the group show, White Out, in which I'll be exhibiting my most recent screen print, Morphed Components.

The exhibition/event, curated by internationally renowned artist, Jill Rock, and featuring over 20 artists and performers, takes place at Hoxton's Hundred Years Gallery. Running from the 3rd December to the 9th January, the exhibition hosts a glorious array of artwork, poetry, film, music and performance art. Hopefully I'll have finished the Ping Pong design work in time to make it to the opening night on Thursday.

Recent/Upcoming Shows

Biog

Based in London since 1999, Chisnall now divides his time and art practice between London and his new, larger studio in Shropshire. Coming from an illustration, painting and print-making background he is now as well known for his sculptures and drawings.

In 2005 he was awarded a bursary and membership from the Royal British Society of Sculptors.

As well as his work appearing in UK and international exhibitions, magazines, on record covers, and on TV (including BBC 2's 'The Culture Show', Channel 4 News, London Live, and Channel 4's 'Four Rooms'), his sculptures have appeared in the feature film, 'Scratch', directed by Jakob Rørvik. In 2013 he was commissioned to produce a series of paintings for the horror film 'Bliaze of Gory'.

The artist's work is featured regularly in on-line articles and interviews, including two separate articles in The Huffington Post.

Chisnall has organised and run art/sculpture workshops for schools and businesses since 1998, including ones for ING Bank's London headquarters via the Royal British Society of Sculptors.

John Malkovich chose Chisnall's script, 'Doppelganger', as the winning entry in the 2008 Sony VAIO Scriptwriting competition. This script, along with Malkovich's was then turned into the short animated film, ‘Snow Angel’.

“ … I’m going to go with the “Doppelganger” script. It’s clever, inventive, and somehow both surprising and inevitable. Very neatly done all in all.” John Malkovich (4th Jan. 2008).

As well as working on his own projects the artist accepts commissions. His clients include Mary Fox Linton, Andy Martin Architects, Converse, Dawood and Tanner, Domus, Ctrl.Alt.Shift, private collectors, and the Ping Pong restaurant chain.

Artist's Statement

Most of my current sculptural work involves the reworking and assemblage of found materials; materials that I feel have a certain ‘resonance’.

Memory, or its fallibility, is also central to a lot of my work. This is more strongly evident in my early pieces, which incorporate or recreate childhood artifacts and toys. A prime example of this is ‘And When I’m a Man I'll Think As a Man’, the life size sculpture of myself as a twelve piece, pre-assembly, model kit. An important aspect of the piece is its bright green colour, which was chosen to match my memory of that of a childhood toy – realizing that the memory would have mutated; exaggerating the luridness of the colour.

Another re-occurring theme or motif in my work is that of the wheeled box or tower, which relates to containment, the urge to possess, and restricted mobility.

As well as the obvious sexual interpretation of the orifice element that has emerged in many of my recent works, my main interest in the device, lies in it being the portal between the internal and the external.

Although not a film maker myself, my work is heavily influenced by my early passion for film and animation. This is evident in my archaic-looking tower sculpture, ‘The City,’ which echoes the same fairy tale or dream-like quality that is characteristic of the short films of animators such as the Brothers Quay and Jan Švankmajer.

“Chisnall’s towering wooden piece is made up of tiny display cases and cabinets made from found materials like skulls, insects and fossils, a kind of modern cabinet of curiosities. Or a nightmarish vision inspired by Jorge Luis Borges. He explains that much like the inhabitants of a big city, each compartmentalised environment plays out its own narrative, seemingly oblivious to that of its neighbour”. Julia Kollewe (journalist – The Guardian and The Independent), 2009.

“...Wayne Chisnall creates art that references such things as structure, time and Modernism as they pass through a very contemporary mindset that focuses on humor, transience, functionality and futility. There is also the presence of popular culture in his thinking, as he addresses the differences between reality and perception, and how that affects the needs, wants and even the formation of the human psyche.” D. Dominick Lambardi, 'Repurposing With a Passion', The Huffington Post, July 14th 2014.